WORK is the passion of interior designer Kristina White, who set up her own company after her career changed direction 20 years ago.

Kristina, who runs Camberley-based Inch House Interiors, moved over to interior design via a career in textiles.

Although she enjoyed that field of work, it was her overwhelming desire to see designs and textures come together to produce a complete, finished result that made her switch.

Believing that passion alone was not enough to run a successful interior design business, she went on to retrain and obtain professional qualifications from Kingston University and the London Design School.

The move certainly paid off, as she has never stopped working during the two decades since starting Inch House .

It could be that the reason for Kristina’s success is that she has an innate ability to bring out clients’ ideas, likes and dislikes and focus their thoughts.

“I am always clear, fair and honest from the outset so people know what to expect,” she said. “Often a client will know what they want but they won’t know how to bring it all together.

“My job is to take it out of their head and translate their dream into reality.”

Kristina is adamant that the end result must reflect the personality and lifestyle of the home owner.

“Some designers have a distinctive in-house look, which is fine for people who want to say they have a home designed by so-and-so,” she said.

“But I want my clients to share in the excitement of creating the new look for their home, so I prefer them to be involved as much as possible within the time they have available. The home must have their stamp on it.”

Clients are kept informed all the way through the process and know exactly what to expect. As Kristina says, it’s nice to have a change but no-one wants a shock, financial or otherwise.

She continued: “When discussing the design, I always take into account their lifestyle. For example, if they have children or pets we have to work round that.

“Also, as partners in the project, we have to gel. If I feel that what they want is not my style, then I will suggest they find another designer, but this has only ever happened once or twice.

“As far as style is concerned, I am happy to do modern or traditional designs, although I do think it should be generally in keeping with the type of house if it’s going to work to maximum effect.

“The unexpected is fine, but sometimes it doesn’t really look quite right if it is a whole design.”

Potential clients get a free consultation, after which Kristina will take the brief and make up a budget forecast.

Next comes the design stage which could involve producing a presentation board and recalculated costs to cover any changes that are made. After a written quote, the design is then implemented.

“I am conscious of a person’s budget — things don’t have to be expensive but I always use good quality products,” said Kristina.

“Ultimately, it is the client’s home and I am not there to take over and I would never try to make them feel they have to have something they don’t want just because I like it.

“I usually get the right balance, though, and people are prepared to listen. Interestingly, I find you can’t always judge the type of home someone lives in by their outward appearance, but I am pretty good at getting a feel for their taste.”

Clients are often nervous about defining exactly what their style is. Although they might be unsure what they like, they are usually clear about what they don’t like.

“Once they see something they like, though, they know it’s right,” Kristina added.

Kristina’s particular skill lies in producing a room that is not only stylish but also interesting, which is harder to achieve than it might appear.

“Lots of people can put schemes together, but it is the blending of the different textures and getting the right balance which is the difficult part if you don’t want it to look either too busy or bland,” she said.

“And it’s amazing how something like a colour change or a change of style can alter someone’s outlook and mood.

“Sometimes people are a bit frightened of change, but they love it when they start to see it all taking shape.
“This can also be true where you have a couple who don’t share the same ideas or taste. You have to be very tactful in this situation and read the relationship to decide if one party is more dominant than the other, or if it is possible to compromise in some way.

“Ultimately, it is up to the couple to sort things out, but I do find that once things start to happen, the more reluctant party comes round to a different way of thinking and they start to agree.”

Flexibility is Kristina’s key word. She has the advantage of not being tied to any suppliers and also has access to a variety of tradespeople who can give people the specific look they want.

Experience means she can predict what a particular product will look like in situ and she also knows which tradesperson will be most suitable for any given task.

Kristina said: “I use all kinds of suppliers, traditional and contemporary, and if someone wants something unusual, I can source it for them.

“And I don’t necessarily have to design a whole room, I’m happy to do much smaller, one-off jobs, too.

“For example, I had a client who had a minimalist room and wanted a focal point, so I found them a fantastic rug. 

“At the other end of the scale, I might have clients who want a whole house doing. But quite often, it starts with one room and then they come back to me when they want to do another one.

“But whatever the size of the job, I want my clients to enjoy the design process. And they do.

“The starting point can be the hardest part, but when it all gets under way, they begin to appreciate just how well a room can work in a different way when you make the right changes.

“That is what fired me up in the first place — seeing how good interior design can really change people’s lives.”